Introduction
Most of us seated here today are synonymous with the word "Weed". What is weed? You may ask. How many of us here have experienced the effects of weed? That's for all of us to do some soul searching and answer ourselves. In the meantime, I won't talk much about the weed that we are all used to. I wouldn't want anyone calling the police on me. However, today I want to discuss medical marijuana. What is medical marijuana? When and where is it used? Does it make people get high? Why is it used? Is it legal? I hope that all of us join in keenly and get the most from this.
What is Marijuana?
Marijuana is a term used to refer to a psychoactive drug obtained from plant extracts from the Cannabis sativa or the Cannabis indica plant. The extracts could be in the form of dried leaves, flowers, seeds, and stems of the plants from genus Cannabis. The most active mind-altering component in marijuana is tetrahydrocannabinol. According to recent data, it is the most commonly abused banned substance in the United States (Compton et al. 209). Yes, it ranks high above cocaine. Studies from 2015 show that an excess of 11 million youths used marijuana between 2014 and 2015 (Compton et al. 209). Marijuana is mainly consumed through smoking. Marijuana can also be consumed in foods such as cookies, candy, and also in beverages such as tea (Compton et al. 210). That’s just a sneak peek into marijuana as a whole. For now, I would wish to touch on the medical aspect of marijuana.
Medical Marijuana
Medical marijuana refers to any extract from the cannabis plant which is used to treat or palliate symptoms of any illness. However, despite marijuana being shown to have health benefits (I shall discuss these later), the Food and Drug Administration is yet to approve marijuana, owing to its numerous side effects (Caulkins et al. 7). Such include tachypnea, tachycardia, intrauterine fetal retardation, hallucinations, and paranoia (Volkow et al. 2223). Despite unrecognition of marijuana by the FDA, some states legalized the use of medical marijuana (Caulkins et al. 8). These states are the likes of Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, and Florida, just to name a few. The Food and Drug Administration approved the use of two cannabinoid-containing drugs. These are Dronabinol and Nabilone, which both contain tetrahydrocannabinol as the active component.
Uses of Dronabinol and Nabilone
Dronabinol and nabilone have numerous uses. They are used to increase appetite in cases of anorexia and are also used to reduce nausea and vomiting as they are powerful anti-emetics (Hill 2476). The cannabinoid-containing drugs are also used as analgesic compounds to treat myalgia and diffuse inflammation (Hill 2478). It is key to note that the body too, produces endogenous cannabinoids, which serve the same anti-emetic functions. The side effects of medical marijuana are similar to marijuana when used for non-medical use. Remember I initially mentioned something concerning intrauterine fetal retardation? Well, cannabis interferes with the normal development of the fetus in the womb, with effects extending long after birth. Women who use marijuana to reduce the feeling of nausea during pregnancy are culpable of this. Usage of marijuana during pregnancy predisposes the baby to social interaction, cognitive and learning difficulties later on in life (Volkow et al. 2225)
Conclusion
In conclusion, current studies are being done so as to establish whether medical marijuana can be used to treat cancer cells (Hill 2481). Studies on mice have shown that marijuana extracts actually slow down the cell cycle progression of cancerous cells. Owing to the cell cycle disruption discovery, there is hope that medical marijuana extracts could be used to treat conditions affecting the immune system, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, multiple sclerosis, and various other autoimmune conditions. However, the use of medical marijuana should be moderated, as too much of everything is poisonous. Thank you.
Works Cited
Caulkins, Jonathan P., Beau Kilmer, and Mark AR Kleiman. Marijuana Legalization: What Everyone Needs to Know®. Oxford University Press, 2016.
Compton, Wilson M., et al. "Use of marijuana for medical purposes among adults in the United States." Jama 317.2 (2017): 209-211.
Hill, Kevin P. "Medical marijuana for treatment of chronic pain and other medical and psychiatric problems: a clinical review." Jama 313.24 (2015): 2474-2483.
Volkow, Nora D., et al. "Adverse health effects of marijuana use." New England Journal of Medicine 370.23 (2014): 2219-2227.
